Posted by Steve Dedman on May 19, 2001 at 12:51:02:
In Reply to: Starting lessons with a young tuba posted by Justin on May 19, 2001 at 11:06:53:
A couple of concepts shamelessly pilfered from Mr. Jacobs:
Fill the horn with vibration.
Alway play for an audience, even if it's the clock on the far wall or one in your head.
And a couple I've picked up along the way:
Play through the horn, not into it.
Exercise: swim, run, basketball, treadmill, whatever.
Practice everything much louder than it is marked. You can always back off later, and it gets
you used to moving a huge amount of air.
If your student is playing on a small horn, try getting him a chance to play as big of a horn as possible. When he gets a good sound on the big horn, switch back and tell him to use just as much air on the small horn. When he does, you'll probably see it in his eyes that he gets it.
It's all about air, and how much the student is using. As long he has a good concept of the sound, and a consistent example of other's sounds, he'll get it if he can move air.